


The Power of Friendship (PART ONE) (To Be Edited)

by ShikiSha



Series: The Playground [2]
Category: The Hobbit (Jackson Movies), The Hobbit - All Media Types, The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Shire is a character, Slow To Update, as i can be bothered basis, not just a setting, you'll see - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-15
Updated: 2017-12-15
Packaged: 2019-02-15 04:36:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,704
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13023360
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShikiSha/pseuds/ShikiSha
Summary: Canon-Divergent AU, OC's (sorry), this version is movie-verse (with some from the book-verse but not much; next version will be, will see how it veers). So I know lots of SI's - this has OCs, very clear on that; at least one will be not from here and it's to play around with the series. So I'm going to have to say this is for now not serious.Quote inspiration by the-modern-typewriter(below prompt by the-modern-typewriter: thank you! )“All that talk about the power of friendship,” the antagonist murmured, as they circled the protagonist. “And it never even occurred to you that perhaps your enemies might have friends too, did it? How arrogant a thing, you are…”Cross-posted on FFN & originally part1 of this series (ch3).The Hobbit and OC fic-bit, part one, there should be more. But this is a warm up :) so.





	The Power of Friendship (PART ONE) (To Be Edited)

**Author's Note:**

> **TRIGGERS/WARNINGS:**  
>  So, a writing warm up! I'll explore it later - but also. I **am** aware that the Wargs aren't presented as they were in the book!verse. Don't worry that'll be explained and they will at points, be described according to the books. 
> 
> ...In fact I might change it to add in initial book-like Wargs before this. Or not.  
>   

 

 

 

 

  **The Power of Friendship**

"The strongest actions for a women, is to love herself, be herself and shine"  - "amongst those who never believed she could," is how the rest of that quote goes, but that's up for debate and not really necessary to the feels of the message - Author unknown

* * *

 

 “All that talk about the power of friendship,” an antagonist murmured, as they circled the protagonist. “And it never even occurred to you that perhaps your enemies might have friends too, did it? How arrogant a thing, you are…” 

 And the forest child (our first OC) was sent away.

* * *

  **Unknown POV (OC):**

Green eyes cease their flitting around - their proprietor's head snaps towards the new noises. Dogs or...her head tilts slightly, considering. Wild dogs, surely. There's always something a little different about them. There's always a silent one, for one.

Dogs. A pack! Hunting? Hunting. And coming  _this_  way.

A blink. Oh _shi-_

\- And then she's rolled in the ground, thrown herself and just as quickly loped to her feet, bounding towards the fringe of the new-old-forest. Snapping, snarling and the shouting let her know all she needs to know: men-humans-people are being hunted (stupid people?). 

The reason she didn't just climb a tree? She's not new. They're unfriendly here. 

She jumps a particularly large, uneven, upturned rocky outcropping, lands on hands and feet, springboards forwards, propelled by her legs mainly, and then slows to a slow prowl and crouch, watching. She's still on higher ground, that plateau's out, so odds are if they come entirely her -new- way, she can run further faster than them. 

* * *

 

There are many men standing, running, dropping things and generally making a loud noisy mess coming towards her. They clearly lack all sense: they should be quiet, for one, and another - they've stopped. In the middle of the clearing. What even? The bemusement worsens.

There's a brief pause. They're looking at her.

Looking quietly to the sky in askance, she decides to give thanks to the Gods here by saving some of the resident one's own children. Just this once. Maybe.  Animated once more, she hitches the partially processed herd animal over a shoulder and carefully secures it up the nearest high tree ( _please_ _don't strangleher_ ), climbing after it. 

High enough, she looks at the scene again; quickly, quickly, she leaps to the next tree, and then, arms and legs finding the natural grooves and knots, makes her way along the treeline, around towards the closest one. It's a short trip.

They are all senseless: they have their backs to the forest. Which would be fine, if they were of any sort of people to belong to it. But clearly not. Because this forest hates everyone. The stupid disregard irks her, pausing in a ready crouch, still unoticed (they are so ignorant) she brings her right hand up to her face for examination. The trees...her mouth frowns and eyebrows dent - but no time for that, her eyes snap back to the present.

One literally runs into another who has tripped. And trips over him. They both are still scrabbling. 

It would be funny if it weren't so pathetic. 

However:

They are surrounded.

 

* * *

 So she moves. 

(And she doesn't know it - but she's watched. By the Trees and entities therein. This usually wouldn't be the case, she's never spent so much time around these ones because elsewhere there's a hedge to keep them out but she would soon find, as this forest was not her own and unfamiliar except that it was dangerous and this  _did matter in this place_...it was also  _sick_ , clouding some of her senses lest she cut herself off from the surroundings)

"Aay-yah!" The sharp sound, one used in martial arts training for this purpose, slices through their noise. The wild dogs raise their heads from their hunting prowls, ears perked up, noses and eyes towards her. She doesn't get a proper look but there's _something odd about those eyes_ - 

There are loud exclamations. Clicking her tongue, she continues. She whistle 'shriek' calls again; and sinks her hand, into the blood and viscera of the food, her kill. She drops some blood to the ground in front of her. Some spills down the tree. (It _absorbs_ the blood.) And holds out some organs. 

The wild dogs, are still dogs, canines, whatever else they are. They break rank, but slowly. One moves forward from the frozen front they've made, from the pack, the pack lead or close, and is riderless (some have some sort of harness - distinguishable because the textures completely different to their fur, mange or skin). It sniffs, coming closer. It's so suspicious for such a large preditor. Large-ish.

When some of the loud-men telegraph (they open their mouths, look to each other, kind of obvious) they're about to shout/speak (and what does it matter, they're still loud, so surely it is the same?) she sends them a look to quiet. It's fierce. Probably a glare. So she glared at them; they've not been clever or smart so far, it's her turn she's allowed.  Slowly, she climbs down the tree bough, still in the tree but no longer the canopy, arm outstretched. She gently beckons, clicking. The riders seem to have broken their stupor - and some start to scuffle, shouting, shrieking, making a din in some tongue to their unresponsive wild-dogs - but as it's happening, she's so close, it's too late for their clearly abusive or neglectful owners - 

Hesitatingly, and half-snarling, until she goes absolutely still and keeps watch with 'look-but-not' look (focusing out), she turns her hand so the meat is offered. The dog with teeth still showing, suddenly half-lunges and grabbing the meat, pelts off several feet back towards her pack. But she's still closer than her packmates. It was good meat - an organ:  the liver, quite large, size of her hand. Immediately, her closest pack are investigating and she snarls back, protecting her food - against her pack.

She frowns, this is too much; it will not do. 

Clicking her tongue, calling, as the dogs will hopefully learn soon, the other two closest - who had vied for the food, cease their anger. Their snarls frozen on their faces, of course, before they approach, she's careful not to make eye contact but looks at their snarls or noses.

The riders are definitely angry now, throughout the pack and one of the approaching wild-dogs has one. It's rider hits it - and it snaps  back at it's rider, growling fiercely. The rider falls off with a grunt, scared and angry but doesnt go for any weapon, though they're quick to get up. At that dogs quick approach, she tears through the meat, takes out some innards, cutting out ribs for the other wild-dog: they are both big, but probably middling in the pack - so they get part of an organ and good meat parts each. 

She's gotten them fed a piece, the three wild-dogs, who are lying down to eat, when the pack goes into a rage, biting, snarling, growling, whining, whimpering, rolling - at each other and their riders, if they had any still on them or at all to begin with. A rider had hit his partner probably and angered, it had bitten him. One of the second wild-dogs, ignores this and comes back to her, sniffing, for more - she gives another piece of organ - lung, or kidney. And is sure to eat some organ herself, smearing some blood over her jaw and mouth, to show she's one of them, now, too. (She's actually never eaten raw meat before but she's been taught this okay- ew and her people culturally can consume raw meat so she should be able to digest without getting ill. It's soft and squishy not at all like how she remembers chicken to be - rubbery and soft. ew ew ew ewew.)

Then... she takes a look at the big pack. They're all starving clearly. Some part of her brain switches off - shock probably- because, they're eating a rider. Or killing them. She's not sure. She goes to sit with the meat she's killed, crouching but - well. Of the whole pack - maybe 3, another 3, two more - oh that ones hurt super bad  - there are now only two riders on their dogs, but maybe some back the way they came who'd fallen off. ...There's one near her - they're looking at the meat too actually (theyre looking at her but she doesnt know that).  

Silently as possible but quickly she shoots arrows at the riders she can see. It's lucky there are only a few - and the rest, some that are off their mounts(they shout), she decides to let run.

The... men wisely leave them too, still half-crouched and huddled together. At least they had the smarts to crouch. One assisted her quickly enough, with the shooting, so not too dumb then. One or two of the wolf-dogs leave after them: one that was small, scarred and beaten down - and the pack alpha, or leader of this regiment (if they were true alpha the others would follow, surely), the strongest physically. A white one. Anyway, they go. 

She glances at the loud-men, they are huddled still, but defensively, and she dismisses them quickly for now: hopefully none of them are hurt, but she's exhausted so, she sits with the meat and takes to carving it up to lob towards the wild-dogs.

Why were their eyes glowing so, before? It kindof looked like fire?

 

* * *

 The wild-dogs shake off, calm down now the riders are gone, and the rest of the pack approaches. But they're not calm. They're ravenous - and she only has the one though large, animal. She's crept down quietly, confident, and stroked along the three who have eaten, sitting with them and the kill in front of her, sliced up. The pack approaches, quieter, curious, but hungry. She must keep calm and vigilant.

Calling, she offers some meat to the closer ones, four approach suddenly towards the meat. She offers, calling out louder but without anger when they get boisterous -to try to get them to slow and behave- they're intellegent and trained so they're not really wild-dogs, they just look it maybe- and the she-wolf she'd first fed, with her two sides, both raise their heads at the bad behaviour, until the others calm down. So that's cool. She swallows down a smile and lets that bit of amazement warm her chest a moment.

Once only, one is too hungry and energetic, so is quite aggressive, and the she-wolf surprisingly snarls to stop it. It whimpers back and calms under her steady push to lie down on it's belly. 

Then she feeds them. They are quite cute. It takes a while to do and she is always careful. Though it is a messy affair, they are worth it and something warm settles in her stomach as a member of the pack, lies down but leans against her, resting now. She settles. Others are settling too. This happens with predators after eating she knows, but it's not really supposed to happen with canines unless they've eaten a lot. Eyeing their ribs, a little, she supposes her meagre offering counts. 

They are ignoring the loud-men, mostly. Some still are cleaning, she accepts one to her hand. There is no playing - yet, she promises herself. There will be. 

Then and only then, does she show attention to the idiot-men. She looks over them and tilts her head in question. 

Surprise zings through her. 

* * *

 

** POV change - Bilbo: **

Bloody muzzles lick furred scarred faces and paws and claws, some awake, some asleep/dosing. But that could change any minute now. The Company shares a tense uneasy silence as they watch the girl or woman of Man (maybe - who knows) singlehandedly  _feed the wild vicious Wargs like stray puppies! And then **sit in the middle of them!**  _As if they weren't starving, angry tooth-and-claw killing monsters!

Green eyes peer at them over the hulking shoulder of one such WARG- no, sorry, brain stop shouting they're  _sleeping_ (mostly) - Oh Valar, preserve them. Green eyes can barely peer over the shoulder. There's a face somewhere under that blood and dirt, Bilbo thought faintly. The eyes aren't angry or scared for being in the midst of Wargs. As if she's one of them. 

And the Wargs - they're so -still - it's easier to see them now. They're.. thin, though. Bilbo thinks. They have...rather emaciated forms, for such large animals. "Why are they so thin?" the question, whispered, echos his thoughts  _exactl_ \- oh, wait. Did he say that? Out loud? When the rest of the Company looks at him varyingly, Bilbo takes that as a resounding yes. Ah, then. 

And that face? Boyo- he sighs. Green eyes, should have known it, he mournfully muses. Well. Time to carry on then. 

"Right", Bilbo pushes his nerves aside, with a quick wipe along his trousers, asks "where have you been? It's been two weeks!" More animated now, he takes a step forward, "You're a mess and" quite furtively, snaps, "get over here - away from the sc- _snarly angry_ wild _man-eating_ _dogs_ , please!" It's not a question and ends rather on a louder note than he'd started or intended. But besides a few snarly snaps and twitches, the WARGS- sorry- let her be.  

Thankfully she stalks towards them. 

"Bilbo", a hand grabs him round the shoulders, rough but not hard, "what d'ye think yer doin?" Bofur asks, nonplussed. "You don't know the lass d'ya?" He's been half-turned to a collection of dwarrow before he knows it, and sputtering, "yes I very well do" - and at curious and suspicious looks, adds a little darkly, "a sight more than I do any of you! So let me go, please!" And before any more feelings are shared, nimbles over towards her. 

* * *

**Company POV/Third Person/Omnipotent:**

"They were not taking care of them." The woman's voice speaks. The person - she! It, no, she was a she - can speak! 

"Maybe she's not a crazy wild-person" Bofur, he must have muttered that, humourous all the same when possible that one. 

The voice- the - 

"And what do we call you, stranger?" Kili speaks up. Others are quick - and quiet at the second reprimanding glare sent their way from her, to agree and second this. She gets up, slowly. 

There was conferring going on over there, between her and the Hobbit. It was suspicious. 

At the collective shuffle, sword/axe/blade raise response that garners, she slowly shows her hands -one still very bloody- which are empty and by her sides palms facing them and raises an eyebrow in question. 

There's a grudging silence and intense suspicious stares towards her. Oh Valar above;"it's not like she saved us or anything" - again - oh, again, bebother it! Bilbo spoke out sarcastically. Gasping - well, half-choking it back, really, his hands fly to his mouth, as if covering it will hush the sound. The silence persists. The girl stays frozen, though now looks strangely amused, like she's confused but paying way too much attention. She slides a look to the Hobbit smile growing. Hands lowering Bilbo shrugs, sheepish. 

"Well, it's true" Fili this time points out. Like an invisible signal, they all gather: Balin, Gloin, Fili, Kili and Thorin, muttering quickly and then, just as quickly, break circle. Points had been made, lines drawn. They knew where they stood. That is: she's a stranger. But barely more than the Halfling. The Halfling knew her. She'd saved them. Balin warningly points out there are no man-settlements here or tribes, Thorin. - Suspicious. She'd been able to feed Wargs but not with herself being the food - suspicious. Stranger - also suspicious. But unarmed - no more arrows. Stupid maybe, or not expecting this, or a local? She can't know about the quest this went without debate. They'll be on their way.

But knowing who she is couldn't hurt either...

Attention is on the stranger. At a nod from Thorin, who is behind most of the dwarrow, Dwalin stands back from his guarding position (a little, so it's less obvious - but Bilbo did not know that. Dwalin is always guarding Thorin and Thorin's sister-sons), with the others: Ori, Dori, Bifur, Bombur and Oin, stumbling a little in their haste to comply and follow Dwalin. Nori just stays at attention, hands ready at his sides, watching. Nori does as he likes. 

"And **_you_ ** may approach, stranger." Thorin graciously allows, though he looks suspicious still.

"Though we have yet to learn your name," Balin adds cleverly, as she approaches, walking carefully around the edges of the resting pack (Bilbo was braver than most thought, himself included), pausing when they wake to stare and stoke them to rest before continuing, "which is not altogether a lot to ask for." He says in his mild-mannered, friendly voice, though there's a little reproach there. 

At this, she looks up, from stroking an over-eager (in comparison) ...packmate, Bilbo supposes with something like awe and a little terror and the horror he felt when they met her. It wasn't like she owed them an explanation. So why the rebuke? She shelves the thought but the caution is there now: he was sly and confident, that one.

Bombour gulps. What kind of a person is packmates with a Warg?

And when she answers, it's briefly, with no consequence, before giving a final gentle stroke along a whiskered cheek and around an ear, "Nayarani".

Bilbo hums a little, hands flapping against his sides. He wants to interject something, but the Company and he are new to each other yet, and don't recognise the tell.

There's a strange accent to the name, gone suddenly when she speaks - from when she spoke before, that is. Some of the Company note it. Others don't. 

She walks to the distance between them and crouches, there in no-mans-land. Bilbo hastens to follow, and also after checking her, crouches.

**Bilbo's POV:**

"People can be complicated," he remembers Naya saying before, loads and loads of times before. But seeing it in practice is well, interesting. Because the Company now, are so different from the Company then, that he'd met only a few days before. They were brash, loud, a little mean and a little friendly and tired. Now they're quiet and cautious and suspicious. Ooh, so much trouble! Darn it Naya. But, looking at her now, he can't say he regrets it at all. "Two weeks beyond your usual timeframe, Naya" he hisses quietly.

He can feel her chuckling, subvocal though it is and so closely do their sides press. "No note on the time extra gone, not later either. I've been worried hoarse!" She looks at him. Before he can help himself, she's trained him out of it, he blames her 100% for how he behaves, he blusters out, " I've been _social_!"

She starts laughing silent still but full-out, and he splutters and sniffs, annoyed, he is! But has to half turn his face away before she sees the smile crawling on his face. Before Thorin can surreptitiously - for him, anyway, Bilbo saw his hands try to reach- grab them, thankfully without the usual shout, the boys are on the move. And dodging around Dwalin, Fili and Kili rush forwards to join them, slowing quite suddenly at a small distance away from her, before slowly walking and sitting. It would have been hilarious if it weren't so foolish of them! Fool boys! It's more likely to cause a panic dwarf and panicked dwarrow attack first, speak never!

Bilbo does what he thinks is best. He elbows her, hard.

It jostles her, but only barely. He scowls. Not like he wanted to hurt her but sheesh.

With a sigh, she sits. Her shoulders relax. Strange, he hadn't noticed it until now, how tense she was with them. Looking quickly around, Bilbo is surprised to realise he's not the only one to miss this. Looking back now, oddly relieved a bit, Bilbo does a quick check over, since she's sitting. He begins patting her head. 

Snorting softly, head ducking and moving away from the pats almost from the get go, Naya raises her hands as if to ward off the pats and scrunches her eyes closed. He blinks and pauses. The boys laugh. Hands on his hips, feeling a bit bothered, Bilbo turns to the two (and the Company at large) and says, "I'm checking her over, if that's okay with you? She could be injured!" 

He looks at the others. Balin nods back, serious now. A lot of the rest look long suffering or considering. Oin suddenly steps forward with, "Well I'll be the best at that laddy." 

Bilbo's quick to intercede, he can feel Naya tense up, "Now now Oin, that's er, very kind of you, but she doesn't know you at all?" Its a bit drowned out by Groin and Bifur and Dori and Nori - and Thorin and Balin and Dwalin (so: almost everyone) clammering in, or physically stepping in front of him or towards him in some way. 

"Oi! Now's not the time, eh?" That was both brothers. Bilbo takes a chance to look down to her: she's black of hair, long and unruly, but half-tied, pale under tan skin, despite her fierce appearance - though she's bloody and muddy, she is also nervous. 

"Yeah," Kili was quick to chip in, cheerful but serious in that way of his, "can't you see you're upsetting the woman?" 

 Or not so foolish, after all, Bilbo thinks fondly. Naya relaxes a bit again. He says, "let's get you somewhere saver where I" he sends a look at Oin, "will help check up on you, yes? Excellent!" Not actually waiting for a reply, he ganders off back towards his pony, Murtle. And stops. And turns, the whole Company had followed, the horses had run to the treeline back around there and been gathered possibly by Murtle. "How'd you get all the way out here anyway?" 

"I ran" Naya says, blinking a lot. She's trying to be blank-faced but she wants to laugh, Bilbo thinks. 

* * *

**Flashback:**

And in the mind of the forest child, in this new place, all she can think is: 

The trees...they are rotting. The forest, It smells sick. 

**Author's Note:**

> 08/12/17 - originally wrote.  
> TBC.
> 
> This Chapter's suggested soundtrack and others could be posted at some point, or on youtube might make a playlist?
> 
> 10/08/18 - I realise this isn't correct, or may seem so, in that the Wargs aren't fleshed (ha) out enough, and are tame compared to their canonical bookverse selves. It'll be fixed/added to in this chapter, so that impression will no longer remain. 
> 
> Also there's something wrong/odd with this chapter piece I'll fix it, just wanted to get it out there first, you know?
> 
> 26/10/18 - yeah so it'll be primarily movie-verse with a little bookverse/reading this go around; Ill do another version that's from book verse. I need to reread it so. As for the Wargs - I know theyre meant to be evil spirit possessed or merged with, but theyre also dogs, yeah, and primal in that way, so sometimes the body and the bodys mind must override the spirits. If theyd stayed longer until the Wargs were no longer starving and mistreatment was a memory of the past, or after the dogs woke up without food. Well, who knows what would have happened. But they didnt. 
> 
> And they are intellegent. And they were mistreated - though they gave back as much as could, the alliance, I imagine was leaning more towards the Orcs having control over them than equal and if they eat/kill their riders from time to time, I cant imagine it's that much of a fuss really.


End file.
